Community Tadbitz: Let’s dance!

From time immemorial, music has been an intricate part of society. It brings people together in song and dance. It is a universal language that everyone understands and can relate to regardless of culture, religious creed or political difference. A stranger in life is a friend on the dance floor.

On Saturday, Feb. 20, the Community Lunch Box Society held their annual Celebration Night at the Central School community centre. Dancing was front and centre, CLB providing food for the soul! The evening was successful, raising double the funds from last year. The community at large was very generous. The night featured live duelling pianos, an incredible supper catered and donated by Eagle River Casino, prizes that were as diverse as the ticket holders and several commemorative speeches.

“The Party Bus” which picked up volunteers, was a surreal world of black lights, strobe lights and loud, raucous, pounding music. The atmosphere was one of merriment and great anticipation. This was our night!

At the community centre we posed for a smiley picture alongside the bus before proceeding inside where we were greeted by tables artistically styled in red and white and a centre stage where two pianos sat facing each other like silent adversaries.

Long tables filled with trays of various salads, pastas, fruit and vegetables, spicy curries, and generous portions of roast beef with gravy filled the air with mouth-watering aromas.

I was asked by the CLB Society to do an opening speech. The stakes were high. “Don’t blow it,” I told myself as I navigated the maze of tables and chairs up to the central stage. It was perhaps the longest two minutes of my life but I would do it again, in a heartbeat. Tara herself gave a heart-warming speech that ended in uproarious applause.

The main event began at 8:30 and went past midnight. The two pianists’ fingers flew across the piano keys pounding out hits from the haunting “Hello” by Adele to the absurd but amusing “Mr Dressup’s Theme Song”. On everyone’s tables there were song request slips that each pianist would take as people submitted them along with a cash donation. All tips that were raised were given directly to the CLB program. It was a blast with people dancing in front of the school’s main stage and wide spread singing and clapping along to the catchy tunes the duelling pianists pounded out. CLB, once again, community in action!